NJ Transit’s next director comes from consulting firm, report says

NEWARK — Gov. Phil Murphy will name an executive with a transportation consulting firm as the next executive director of NJ Transit.

NJ.com, citing unnamed sources, said Murphy will nominate Kevin Corbett to take the reins of the troubled agency after Steven Santoro steps down in April.

Corbett is currently North American vice president of AECOM. He was part of AECOM's team that planned the ARC Tunnel, before Gov. Chris Christie canceled the project.

He is also a member of the board of directors of the Regional Plan Association, an organization whose researchers and regional planners work to improve the quality of life in the tri-state area and work on transportation issues in the Northeast.

Corbett, if confirmed by NJ Transit's board of directors, would have a number of issues to deal with as executive director, from customer service to staffing to the installation of positive train control.

"We cannot continue with the system that led the nation in accidents and breakdowns. We cannot continue with a system that has been so starved by Trenton that it's been forced to use long-term capital funds to pay for day-to-day expenses, delaying much-needed upgrades, including those to passenger safety," Murphy said.